Iran War Day 255: Qatar’s PM to Meet Trump, Vance to Push for Deal

The Iran War State of the Union: Trump says he’s “not looking to” restart the active phase of the war. Photo by Brendan SMIALOWSKI / AFP via Getty Images Qatar’s Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani will meet President Donald Trump and Vice President J.D. Vance in Washington Monday as the Gulf monarchy tries to close the gap between American and Iranian peace deal demands. According to a Saturday report in the Guardian, Qatar has proposed that Iran allow UN inspectors into its nuclear sites in exchange for the U.S. lifting its naval blockade and unfreezing some of the Islamic Republic’s assets. Al-Thani spoke to Trump Friday about the new proposal. An Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman said Monday that Iran remained committed to its obligations under the Nonproliferation Treaty, but could not honor them under current circumstances. Diplomatic activity has intensified amid concerns that fighting will be renewed in the wake of last Tuesday’s American midterm elections. U.S. Central Command on Saturday announced “Task Force Iron Gate,” a staff devoted to stopping Iranian overland trade to complement the naval blockade in the Persian Gulf. Subscribe Today Get daily emails in your inbox Both sides have expressed reluctance to return to the active phase of hostilities. Trump said in an interview with 60 Minutes that aired Sunday that he did not intend to renew military escalation against Iran. “I’m not looking to. I don’t think there's any reason to. I don’t think there’s any reason to,” he said. Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian said Monday that Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei had given him a mandate to end the current “neither war nor peace” impasse with the U.S., including through diplomacy if possible. In addition to Qatar, other countries are reportedly taking an active role in heading of further war. Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan urged Trump over the weekend not to escalate against Iran, according to a Monday comment from the Turkish intelligence chief İbrahim Kalın. Kalın also said that Vance and the Iranian Secretary of the Supreme National Security Council Mohsen Rezaei would travel to Qatar next week for negotiations. The Washington Post’s David Ignatius claimed Friday that the Trump administration had reached out to China for help brokering an end to the war. The Chinese Foreign Ministry declined Monday to comment on the substance of that report, but asserted that the war is not in the best interest of both parties and the international community. Energy markets responded positively at the prospects of a diplomatic settlement. Brent crude opened Monday at $97.63 and began tumbling. AAA reported further easing for consumers, with Monday’s national average prices per gallon coming down to $4.01 for regular gas and $6.17 for diesel.